Well-drilling apparatus



May"15, 1'923. 1,454,984

v. A. STEWART WELL DRILLING APPARATUS Voriginal Filed April 4, 1921 2 sheets-sheet 1 w z Muni .14.1

May l5, 1923. 1,454,984

v v. A. STEWART y WELL DRILLING APPARATUS |I Illlil J 7 0 of /9 Snowdon? Patented May 15, 1923.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.`

.VICTOR A; STEWART, OF BROOKLYN, Nlfii:v YORK, ASSIGNOE OF ONE-HALF TO ROUGIER THORNE, OF GLEN COVE, NEWT YORK.

WELL-Barmenia APPARATUS.

Application filedApril 4, 1921, Serial 110.458,32?. Renewed October 14, 1922. Serial No. 594,656.

To all whom t may concern:

y. Be itjknown that l, VioToR A. STEWART, a subject of the King of Great Britain, `and resident of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of Newl York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in vWell- Drilling Apparatus, of which the following is a specification. p

The invention relates to well-drilling apparatus and has more particular reference to improvements in means for drilling oil wells or wells of like character. I present my invention herein as embodied in apparatus for the drilling of oil wells, said iiivention having been more particularly designed for that purpose. The apparatus comprises the usual `exterior cylindrical casing, an inner tubular rotary shaft and a bit or tool of special construction adapted to be lowered through said shaft to operative position and become interlocked with said shaft for rotation therewith and to be disengaged from said shaft and drawn npwardly through the same at any time it might be desired to withdraw the bit without removing the shaft. The bit or tool proper comprises a stock and a pair of foldable blades, and said stock is connected with a rope or cable by which the bit may be lowoperative position, and this feature of the construction is utilized on the return movement. of the bit up through the shaft, since ou suoli movement the outer ends of tlic bladesautomatically fold downwardly and inwardly alongside of each other so that the i blades may not occupy more space laterallv considered than the diameter of the bore of the sha-ft.4 On the lower end of t-he shaft is provided a headwhich interlocks with the blades.. of the bit when said blades are in their laterally `extended operative position., and said head in addition to becoming interlocked with the blades by direct engagement ered through the shaft or drawn upwardly are formed with flanges at opposite sides to y engage, during the rotation of the shaft, the outer end portions of the blades so as to aid in causing said blades to efficiently perform their duties and to preserve said blades against being unduly strained or bent` or otherwise damaged. `My invention therefore `resides more especially in the construction of the lower end of the tubular shaft and in the construction of the bit for cooperation therewith.

The invention will be fully understood from the detailed description hereinafter presented, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a central vertical section, partly broken away, of an oil well drilling apparatus embodying my invention, Fig. l illustrating the bit or boring tool as being al-v lowed to descend through the tubular shaft located concentrically within 'the exteriorv .through the exterior casing to interlock with said blades;

Fig. 3 is a like view of the same, illustrating the tubular shaft as having been lowered through the exterior casing and iiitei'locked with thev blades of the bit or tool, the parts then being ready for operation;

Fig. 4l is a corresponding view of the same illustrating the tubular shaft as having been elevated, after a drilling operation, within the exterior casing and the bit or tool as being drawn upwardly through said shaft, the blades of the bit or tool when drawn upwardly reversing themselves in position from that occupied by them when descending through the shaft, as may be seen by a comparison of Figs. l and et;

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section through the but saine, taken on the dotted line 5--5 of Fig. l Fig. 6 is a horizontal section through the same, taken on the dotted line 6--6 of Fig. 2 Fig. 7 is a horizontal section through the same, taken on the dotted line 7--7 of Fig. e

Fig. 8 is a side elevation of the lower porill tion of the tubular shaft and the bit, illustrated in the relation they occupy when in their operative position shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 9 is an edge View of the same taken from the left hand side of Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a bottom View of the same;

Fig. 11 is a detached perspective View of one of the blades of the bit, and

Fig. 12 is a detail showing` the employment of. a swivel in the connection of the rope or cable to the stock of the bit or tool.

ln the drawings, 15 designates the customary tubulaiexterior casing en'iployed in drilling oil-wells, andY lo a tubular shaft which, except at its lower end, is also of usual character, said shaft 1G being` formed ofl tubing'A in sections connected together, as required, by couplings 17 The bit or 'tool compri? a steelt 18 two pivoted blades 19, 20, rcsi'iectirely, ried by said stock and secure( face -L relation tithin a slot 21 in thc lower Y said stock by r eans of a transif'erso rod 22 which extends through said s blades The stoclr 18 has a subst u cylindricalreidcal body transyerf'el slotted at its lower end, at 2l, to i blades 19, Q0 and being` provid eyer23 at its upper end to receive the lower end of a rope or cable Q-Lr, by means of which the bit may allowed to descend throuoh the shaft 1G to the point of applicata or operative use or drawn ngt-:w said shaft, as the occasion may require. The

body of the st cl- 18 freely but rather snugly fits the bore of tie shaft 1G and ou its oxterior vertical sides is tinted orformed with vertical grooves to serve waterways for the water employed in the drilling); operation. y

The blades are exactly alillc rever1-Seel.)7 dispo ed, and i these blades, as to shape, are shown 11. The blades 19, 2G each have z' lower edoe 26 to engage the earth, said o je 2G extending from a point about sentrally belowlthe pivot-rod Q2 to the outer end or .dige 27. ofthe blade. which 2'? curves upwardly and inwardly, ned in Fie. Q, so that i cooperation ith the et may be rdiede in the' or', lllroiu the inner end of 2b 'the blade, said blade is olf ardly to a reni led the inner end of the 'Y tnt blades 19. 'oloin except at the points 1r 2B, Q9 cut through sui edfes and downwardly into the vbodies the bla tween the recesses or si. tiallj: equal to the shown in i 4, 2 si portions` of tue bl; or slots QS, 29 are su Y through lig'. 11) in the blades 19, 2O for the pivot pin or rod 22 is at one sicleof ther centerof eid blades, leavin@` the outer end'portins of said blades, at 2i', heavier than the inner e d noi-tions thereof, and this feature vofthe VL Constr ction becomes nnportantfwhen"the tool is lowered downwardly through the shaf 1G and passes beyond the same' and .raroly at their vupper" ends from each other from the position in which theyare shown i 1 to that illustrated Vin Figs. Qiand il. rlhe orerweighting of the outer or cutends ofthe blades19,20 isalso ofinif` po nce in permitting said bladeswlien the sha 16 is moved upwardly and theropeor cable 2e is thereafter drawn upwardly, to taire the position yin which theyare illustrate-d in Fliege drawn upwardly through thesliaft 16.

Upon the lower enr,L ofthe shaft 16 is a hollow head said head preferably, though not necessarily, beingmade in a separate c he bl;E les are to automatically turn' lout? and allow the vbit to be piece andthreaded upon the lower endv of" said sliaft'and hating a' bore of th'e'same diameter the bore of said shaft andalso haring a shoulder 32 to abut against the lower end of the shaft 16 when said head is screwed home. -The head31 isformed `at I vopposite sides with vertical abutment Aor presser dang-es to engagethe blades 19, Q0 in the manner shown in Figs. 7 andv 10 ,during the rotation of the shaft 16 vin the operation of drilling. Y

rEhe flanges Si?, 341 are of substantial character and they re offse infopposite directions from the axial center ofthe shaft-16, as shown in l? "l, and the Vfull width of g' end portion of the'blade 19, while q lirewiso adapted to engage the oudr cutting' endl` portion of the blade 20.

The lid-md is adapted to engage the outer lill) down upon the outer end of the blade 20y and the inner end of the blade 19, the metal immediately `above the recess 36 entering the recess 29 of the blade 20 and the recess 28 of the blade 19, said blades thus becoming interlocked with said head 31. The recesses 35, 36 are directly at the side of the respective flanges 33, 34, as shown in Fig. 10, and the engagement of the walls of these recesses 35, 36 with the blades 19, 2O at the recesses 28, 29 therein, serves to efficiently interlock the head 31 with said blades when the latter are in their operative position and results in the formation of a durable strainresisting structure adapted for efficient use in drilling, there being a firincooperative action between the bit, its stock 18, the head 31 and flanges 33, 34 rendering the `tool of great durability and efficiency.

One important advantage of my invention resides in the fact that the bit consisting of the stock 18 and blades 19, 20 may be low-y ered down through the shaft 16, and said blades caused to automatically take their operative position, as shown in Fig. 2, and become locked in that position on the lowering of the shaft 16 to carry its head 31 into interlocking engagement with said blades, as shown in Fig. 3, and that whenever necessary the bit consisting of the stock 13 and blades 19, 20 may be withdrawn upwardly through and from the shaft 16 for such treatment as may be necessary and then returned down through said yshaft for continuing the operation. The shaft 16 preparatory tothe withdrawal of the bit upwardly therefrom may be elevated to the slight extent indicated in Fig. 4, so that theblades A19, 20 may properly fold together and be capable of being drawn upwardly through said shaft. The bit is detachable from the shaft while the shaft may be a long distance under ground, and since the bit is always connected with the cable 24 there is never any danger of losing thebit at the bottom of the p well. i

When the bit is introducedinto the shaft 16 for the purpose of being lowered through the lower end thereof, the heavier outer or cutting ends of the blades119, 29 will be folded upwardly into the slot 21 in the lower end of the stock 18, or to the position shown in Fig, 1, and thereupon by means of the cable or rope 24, thebit consisting of thel stock 18 and blades 19, 2() will be allowed to descend by gravity through the shaft 16. When the blades 19 pass downwardly from the lower end of the shaft 16, the lighter rounded inner ends of the blades will strike the ground and the hea-vier outer ends 27 of` thereof into interlocking engagement with said blades 19, 20, the structure then having its parts disposed and related to one another in the manner shown in' Fig. 3, this being the operative position and the drill when the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 3, being` ready for operation. n

When it is desired to withdraw the bit or tool upwardly from the shaft 16, the shaft will be raised slightly as indicated in Fig. 4 and thereupon by means of the rope or cable 24 the bitwill be drawn upwardly through the shaft 16. On the first yupward pull of the rope 24 on the stock 18, the heavier outer ends of the blades 19, 20 will, by gravity, turn downwardly toward and alongside of each other, as vshown in Fig. 4, and this action will turn the inner and lighter ends 12T of said blades inwardly toward each other, so that the blades will' stand vertically and offer no obstruction to their upward passage through the shaft 16. Villien the blades 19,

20 are lowered through the shaft 16, their heavier ends are, prior to the introduction of the bit to the shaft, folded upwardly alongside of each other, as shown in Fig. 1, so that the blades may take their operative position when emerging from the lower end of'said shaft, and when the bit is pulled upwardly for withdrawal through the shaft 16,

the heavier outer ends of the blades 19, 29 automatically fold downwardly toward each other and the blades are thereby compelled to fold inte the smallest transverse dimensions possible so that they may be moved upwardly without difl'icultythrough the shaft 16. ln carrying out my invention I seek to provide a very durable and simple construction with the blades capable of automatic folding action outwardly and inwardly Utl without the aid of such complicating feai tures'as springs, cams and the like.

It may be seen on reference to F igsq2 and 3 that the lower outer edges of the blades 19, 20 are adapted to cut a hole of the full diameter of the exterior casing 15thereby forming a path for said casing.

ln Fig. 12 I illustrate the Lipper end of the stock 18 as being equipped with a swivel 40 of' ordinary type to which the lower end of the rope or cable 24 may be connected, thisv swivel serving the purpose of preventing the twisting of the rope or cable 2-1 during the boring or drilling operation.

l do not limit my invention to all the details of form and structure hereinbefore described, since there would be an operative interlocking of the shaft 16 with the blades 19, 2O if the flanges 33, 34 were omitted and also if the recesses 2S. 29 in the blades were omitted, since then. the side walls of the recesses 35, 36 by their engagement with said blades would impart the rotationl of the shaft 16 to the blades. EL more eilicient and durable construction is, however, produced llt) , ed when the shaft is lowered to interlock with said blades for imparting movement thereto, and said blades atL their cutting ends, when the blades are unfolded, extending outwardly to the full diameter of and below said casing and being adapted' to clear a path for the descent of the same.

T. In a well-drilling apparatus, a rotary tubular shaft, a bit and va rope or cable connected with said bit for lowering or raising the same freely through said shaft, bit comprising a stock or body portion transversely slotted in its lower end anda pair of blades pivoted within said slot and being heavier at their outer or cutting ends and adapted to be folded upwardly with their cutting ends uppermost when the bit is to be lowered through said shaft and to automatically unfold outwardly and downwardly on leaving the lower end of said shaft, and said blades on an upward pull of said rope to withdraw the bit through said shaft, being adapted to` automatically fold together with their heavier ends downward, and the lower end of said shaft being adapted when the shaft is lowered to interlock with said blades for imparting movement thereto, and said blades at their inner ends bein inset from the plane of the lower cutting edge of their outer ends and being shorter than said outer ends and serving on striking the bottom of the well to facilitate the turning outwardly in opposite directions of said outer ends to operative position.

8. ln a well-drilling apparatus, a rotary tubular shaft, a bit and a rope or cable connected with said bit for lowering` or raising the saine freely through said shaft, said bit comprising a stock or body portion transversely slotteal in its lower end and a pair of blades pivoted within said slot and beinghe'avier at their outer or cutting ends and adapted to be folded upwardly `with their cutting ends uppermost when the bit is to be lowered through said shaft and to automatically unfold outwardly and downwardly on leaving tbe lower end of said sha l1, and saidblad-es on an upward pull of said rope to withdraw the bit` through said shaft, being' adapted to automatically fold together with their cutting ends downward, and the lower end of said shaft being' recessed to pass downwardly upon the outer faces of both of said blades at both sides of the pivot point thereof and lock said blades in face to facey relation and to said shaft, and said blades vat their inner ends being inset from the plane of the lower cutting edge of their outer ends and being shorter than said outer ends and serving on striking the bottom of the well to facilitate the turning outwardly in opposite directions of said outer ends to operative position.

Signed at N ew York cit. in the county of N ew York and State of hew York, this lst day of April, A. D. 1921.

VICTOR A. STEVART. 

